For Tenants
For Landlords

Basic Tenant Rights

General Rights

  • Tenants in Georgia are not allowed to withhold rent. The obligation to pay rent is separate from the landlord’s duty to make repairs.
  • Landlords are responsible for making sure the property is habitable, maintaining it, and making necessary repairs. Tenants should inform the landlord of any problems in writing.
  • For major and/or expensive repair and maintenance issues, tenants may contact the housing code enforcement for their city or county and request an inspection of the property.
  • For more minor and inexpensive repair and maintenance issues, tenants may repair and deduct. This option requires the tenant to give the landlord notice of the need for repairs and the tenant’s intention to repair and deduct in writing before doing anything.
    • Tenants must allow the landlord a reasonable time and opportunity to make repairs before proceeding with the repair and deduct.
    • Tenants must save all of the receipts for the repairs and provide the landlord with copies of the receipts with another written notice explaining the amount of rent they will pay due to the repair and deduct.
    • Tenants may also pay for repairs and then file a lawsuit against the landlord seeking reimbursement. The tenant must give prior notice, in writing, to the landlord of their intention to repair and sue prior to taking any action.

Landlords are prohibited from retaliating against tenants for requesting repairs or contacting housing code enforcement or other government agencies to inspect the property.

  • Leases can only be terminated early under specific circumstances, such as tenants fleeing domestic violence (with 30-days notice) or military members being deployed or relocated. An early termination clause may also be included in the lease.
  • If there is no lease, the default rule is that landlords must give 60-days notice to terminate, while tenants must give 30-days notice. Landlords may give less notice if there is cause to terminate, such as nonpayment of rent.
  • Always read the lease; provisions of an expired lease still apply on a month-to-month basis if the tenancy continues.

Certain Georgia laws apply regardless of what the lease may state:

  • Landlords must use the court process for eviction.
  • Landlords must follow the law regarding security deposits.
  • Landlords cannot make tenants responsible for maintenance; tenants may only be charged for repairs if they caused the damage.

Fair Housing Rights

  • Landlords are prohibited from discriminating against a person based on: Race, Color, Religion, Sex, National Origin, Family Status, or Disability.
  • Discriminatory actions include refusing to rent, discouraging a person from renting, steering renters to specific locations, concealing unit availability, imposing different rules/terms, or making preferences based on these classifications.
  • Tenants have the right to file a fair housing complaint if they believe they have experienced discrimination.
  • It is illegal for landlords to threaten or intimidate someone for exercising their fair housing rights.
  • Landlords are required to make:
    • Reasonable Accommodations: A reasonable accommodation is a requested change or adjustment to a rule, policy, practice, or service to give a tenant with a disability an equal opportunity to use and enjoy the property. A landlord’s failure to respond to an accommodation or modification request is considered a denial.
    • Reasonable Modifications: A reasonable modification is a structural change to the existing premises to allow a tenant with a disability to use and enjoy the property. The tenant may be responsible for paying for the structural modifications.
    • Landlords must ensure equal access for individuals with disabilities.
  • Landlords and tenants should discuss the reasonable accommodation request.
  • Landlords can ask for documentation (like a doctor’s note) to verify the disability and the necessary link between the disability and the requested accommodation.
  • Landlords cannot ask for specific medical records, details about the diagnosis, or require the tenant to sign a HIPAA release to get medical records or discuss the diagnosis with the doctor.

Eviction Process and Rights

The dispossessory (eviction) process is the required court action a landlord must use to evict a tenant in Georgia.

  • Written Demand for Possession: Before filing, the landlord must provide the tenant with a written notice demanding they vacate the property.
  • Non-Payment Notice: If the eviction is for non-payment of rent, this written demand must include the balance owed and state that the tenant has three business days from receipt of the notice to pay the balance to remain in the property.

The landlord files a dispossessory action (sometimes called a warrant) in court.

  • The initial court filing (dispossessory affidavit or warrant) will be officially served on the tenant by a Marshal or process server. Service can be performed in one of three ways:
    • Personal Service: Handed directly to the tenant.
    • Notorious Service: Handed to someone who lives with the tenant.
    • Tack-and-Mail Service: Posted on the property door and mailed to the tenant on the same day. If served this way and no answer is filed, the court cannot issue a money judgment against the tenant.
  • Deadline to Answer: The tenant has 7 days from the date of service to file a written answer with the court.
  • Content of Answer: The answer should include all the tenant’s defenses to the landlord’s claims. The tenant may also include counterclaims (claims against the landlord) with their answer.
  • Default: If the tenant fails to file an answer, the case is considered to be in default, and the landlord can obtain a writ of possession without a hearing.
    • A default judgment in an eviction case cannot be appealed, but the court may set it aside if the tenant files a request and shows very good cause for missing the deadline.
  • Hearing: After the answer is filed, the court will schedule a hearing.
  • Presenting the Case: In the hearing, the landlord presents their case first, followed by the tenant. Tenants should bring all relevant evidence, such as the lease, rent receipts, and photos/videos of the property.
  • Mediation: The court may allow the parties to meet and try to resolve the case through mediation before it holds the hearing; any agreement reached is binding and cannot be appealed.
  • Judgment: The court will enter a written decision after the hearing.
  • Appeal Deadline: If the tenant disagrees with the court’s decision, they have 7 days from the date of the decision to file a Petition for Review (appeal) in the appellate court. The Petition must be served on the trial court and the landlord after it is filed.
  • Staying Possession During Appeal: To remain in the property while the appeal is pending, the tenant must pay all past-due rent and ongoing monthly rent into the court registry.
  • If any rent is not paid on time or in full, the landlord will be allowed to get a writ of possession to evict the tenant, even if the appeal is ongoing.
  • Writ of Possession (Final Eviction Order): Once the landlord is granted permission to evict, they must obtain a writ of possession from the court.
  • Physical Eviction: The writ must be executed by Marshals or other court-approved law enforcement.
  • No Notice of Eviction Date: The tenant will not receive advance notice of when the physical eviction will happen. If a writ of possession is issued, the tenant should be prepared to move and secure possessions like medications, documents, and valuable items.

Security Deposits

Security deposits are legally limited to a maximum of two months rent. The terms for the deposit and its return should be specified in the lease agreement.

  • Tenants should maintain detailed records concerning the deposit, including proof of payment and documentation of the property’s condition at move-in.
  • When moving out, tenants must clean the property, document the condition with pictures or videos, return the keys, and provide a forwarding mailing address.
  • The landlord has 30 days from the date the tenant returns possession of the property to either return the full security deposit or provide a statement explaining why all or part of the deposit is being retained.
  • Landlords are permitted to keep the deposit if the tenant owes a balance or if the property has damage beyond normal wear and tear.
  • If the tenant disagrees with the landlord’s decision to keep some or all of the deposit, they may file a claim for the deposit amount in small claims court.
  • If the landlord owns 10 or more rental units or utilizes a property management company, the tenant may be able to seek treble damages (three times the deposit amount).
  • If the tenant accepts a partial return of funds, they forfeit the right to challenge the landlord’s decision to keep the remainder.

Basic Landlord Duties

  • Landlords are not allowed to discriminate against a person based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, family status, or disability. This includes refusing to rent, discouraging a person from renting, steering renters to a specific location, not advertising or concealing availability of a unit, imposing different rules and terms, and/or making any preferences to any person because of these classifications.
  • All renters have the right to file a fair housing complaint if they believe they have experienced discrimination by a landlord. It is illegal to threaten and intimidate renters for using their fair housing rights.
  • For people with disabilities, landlords are required to make reasonable accommodations, allow reasonable changes, and ensure equal access.
  • It is helpful for landlords to have attorneys familiar with landlord and renter rights review lease agreements before given to a renter to ensure proper use of language and terms in accordance with state and federal laws.

Landlords must follow all local housing codes at all times, including maintaining the building structure, keeping all utilities in working order, and keeping the unit habitable and safe for renters. It is illegal to evict renters for requesting any repairs or calling code enforcement for assistance.

Early eviction prevention strategies can save landlords time and the expense of a court filing. Landlords can use payment plans, third-party mediation services, rental assistance programs, and early lease terminations to avoid the costs of formal eviction processes.

  • In Georgia, there is a court dispossessory process (eviction process) that must be followed before a landlord can prevent a renter access to the unit. Renters are allowed to remain in the property with working utilities until after the court decision is made and, if ordered, a writ of possession is executed by law enforcement.
  • Renters must receive at least three (3) business days written notice of failure to pay rent before landlords can file a dispossessory case in court. If the renter pays the late rent in full within those three business days, a dispossessory case cannot be filed.
  • Renters are allowed to remain in their unit if they pay all overdue rent, late fees that are designated in the lease as additional rent, and court costs within seven (7) days of receiving a dispossessory summons for not paying rent. This is known as the “Tender Defense” and it can only be used once within a 12 month period.
  • The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) provides delayed court proceedings and early lease termination protections to active members of the military when military service makes the ability to pay rent difficult.
  • The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) provides early lease termination and discrimination protections for women, men, and children who are victims of family violence, dating violence, and stalking. Georgia law also provides protections, including the right to early lease termination.